


His Scream was Pitch Perfect

by mynameisyarra



Series: Sir Lionheart [3]
Category: Rise of the Guardians (2012)
Genre: Gen, no avengers this time
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-23
Updated: 2012-12-23
Packaged: 2017-11-22 01:54:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/604531
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mynameisyarra/pseuds/mynameisyarra
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>He never thought Fear could be broken.</p>
            </blockquote>





	His Scream was Pitch Perfect

**Author's Note:**

> I did a stupid mistake so I deleted Season of Change. Have this one instead. I like it better.

It was early in autumn, and Jamie was still trying to get used to his new college. Not that he can't follow the studies, it was more because he was trying to fit in his new schedule between his superhero duty. Oh man, North would give him an earful if he knew Jamie thought of that. School came first, he said.

When he moved to New York, he was a bit worried about living on his own. But it turned out to be okay. He got a pretty nice apartment for a college student, thanks to his parents' savings. His neighborhood was relatively safe, and the city  peaceful for a change. Sure, he still needed to go Lionheart sometimes, but it was never for anything dangerous. At least not life-threateningly so. He should have known it wouldn't last long.

The night was comfortably cold on his skin. The wind guided him, he was not light enough for them to carry him but it never stopped them from accompanying the youngest Guardian. Jumping from roof to roof like the superheroes he liked to read in the comics--except he was one now!- he patrolled, stretching his core to listen for the little voices who needed his help. Instead, he ran into a Night Mare. Stopping his track, Lionheart grabbed the boomerang Bunnymund gave him, ready to fight. Sometimes he found masterless black sand wandering around spreading bad dreams. Jack and Sandy were usually the ones whom dealt with them, but it seemed to be his turn tonight.

The horse didn't look interested in him. It looked the other way and sniffed the air before it took off. "Hey!" Jamie yelled and chased the thing. After awhile he started to gain on it. When he came close enough, Lionheart threw the boomerang. He was surprised when the Night Mare didn't burst into golden sand like usual. Instead, it was still black and regenerated itself. The horse kept on going and Jamie kept on chasing until the young hero saw something in front of them. He stopped at the sight of hundreds and hundreds of Night Mares mauling on someone. The person's fear was so strong that the black sand focused itself on them.

It didn't take long for Jamie to choose a stupid decision and jumped into the fray.

It was suffocating, and Jamie thought he was a goner for a moment. But then he was able to grab the victim's too skinny hand and ran away with him. One stupid decision was enough for today, Jamie was smart enough to not battle a horde of Night Mares alone. "Oh, _now_ you want to fight?!" Lionheart gritted his teeth as the horses turned to chase him. Thankfully, the person he saved was light enough to not hinder his running. Still, he can't keep this going, he had to run another way. The autumn wind blew as hard as possible in an attempt to give Jamie more time. The young hero grabbed his emergency snow globe and yelled, "NORTH'S WORKSHOP!" before he smashed it to the ground. A multi-colored portal appeared and he jumped in, closing it in the process.

On the other side of the portal, Jamie found himself too tired to stand. He could hear North's booming voice coming his way. "Jamie! Where did you find Pitch?"  
"Pitch?" He blinked in confusion before his eyes were trailing to the person he carried. "Oh, damn."

 

* * *

 

"And you didn't realize you were carrying Pitch all those time?" Jack was the only one who found this funny. The others were wary and/or incredulous (and then there was Sandy who looked concerned, but to whom Jamie didn't know).  
"I was being chased by an army of Night Mares! Gimme a break here!" Jamie folded his arms childishly.

Pitch was sleeping peacefully with the help of the golden sand. No need to lure anymore Fearlings after all. "Ya sure we don't need to tie him up?" Bunny asked The Sandman, and the oldest Guardian gave a scowl. "What? It was a legit question." Sandy sighed and slowly pulled his sand away. Pitch's eyes fluttered, he was waking up. Weapons at hands, The Guardians was expecting a violent scream, at the very least. To see the so called Nightmare King sat up with a dazed--and dare they said it, _lost_ \- look on his face was rather anti-climatic.

Pitch stared at nothing for the longest time. He didn't even seem to realize his life-long enemies were in the same room as him. "Sandman?" He finally said softly, almost as if he was relieved. But then his expression turned hard. "Did you save me?" Sandy shook his head and pointed at Jamie. Pitch stared at him before finally acknowledging him with an "Ah."  
"Sandy, what is happening?" Toothiana asked cautiously.

"Nothing." Pitch answered for him. Although, from Sandy's expression it was obvious that he disagreed. The dark spirit stood up from the bed, his feet were wobbly and he almost fell if not for the golden sand catching him. "I don't need your help!" He barked. Sandy folded his arms and scowled. "Now if you are _done_ trying to coddle me, I need to get back to my Fearlings."  
"Your Fearlings?" Jamie was incredulous. "Dude! They mauled you!"  
Pitch looked like he wanted to flinch but kept his composure. "And what would you know? Maybe I was doing some strange ritual to empower me."  
Jack snorted, "Funny, I remember you being a better liar."  
"And I don't remember asking your opinion, Frost." Pitch snarled.

The two glared at each other. North stepped in. "Let's not fight here, yes?" The Boogeyman just gritted his teeth and walk away. "And where do you think you are going?"  
"Back to my Fearlings! Did you not listen?"  
"Please tell me you are kidding, they are going to kill you!" Jamie objected.  
"What do you care?!" The shadows reacted to Pitch's emotion and spiked. "Who are you anyway?"  
"You don't remember me?"  
"I would have remembered that tacky mask." He mocked. "Look, I don't have time for this, where did you find me?"  
"Somewhere near Brooklyn, why--." Jamie cursed when Pitch blurred and disappeared. "Dammit!"

 

* * *

 

Jamie found The Boogeyman in a shabby apartment near the place he saved the guy. The Fearlings looked even more agitated than before. "Pitch! Let the girl go!" He yelled when he saw the dark spirit was towering a cowering little girl.  
"Are you stupid?! If I move then the girl will be in danger!" Jamie was surprised by the answer. Indeed, when he looked closely, Pitch was the only being that stood between the girl and the black sand. He didn't seem he would last long.

"Sir Lionheart? You came?" The girl said between choked sobs. She sounded surprised.  
"Don't worry okay, everything is going to be fine." Jamie assured her.  
"Get her out of here!" Pitch made a hole between the sand and the masked Guardian grabbed the girl through it. The girl gasped when Lionheart hugged her protectively.  
"Are you alright?"  
She nodded, eyes still wide. "What about him?"  
It took Jamie a moment to realize that she was talking about Pitch. "You can see him?"

A loud shattering sound of a window tore his attention away. The Fearlings crashed outside, taking Pitch away with them. This was like The Easter Incident again, but this time, Jamie knew he had to save the dark spirit. "Pitch!" He let the girl go and went after them. It was strange, Pitch wasn't in control of the black sand, that much was obvious. So who was? If there was none then why weren't they go wild yet?

The wind smoothened his landing and he realized that he was in front of an abandoned theater. Cautiously, he entered. What he saw sickened him. There Pitch was, being torn apart by The Night Mares again, his face was in agony and he didn't even scream. He didn't fight back. What was going on?

Gripping a small knife he materialized--it was from the girl's imagination, which was weakened by Night Mares- Lionheart charged. He kept slashing and kicking and almost forgetting Bunny's trainings in a desperate attempt to save The Boogeyman. It was surreal.

"Jamie!" A familiar voice yelled and the Fearlings were frozen.  
"Jack!" The youngest Guardian sighed in relief. His boyfriend came, along with his teammates. Sandy acted quickly and turned The Night Mares into his golden sand. Like an animal sensing danger, the black sand dispersed before Sandy can reformed all of them.  
"Take a rest Sandy." North put a firm but gentle hand on his comrade's shoulder. Even though he wanted to object, The Sandman floated down to a golden pillow.

"Pitch..." Toothiana flew toward the unmoving spirit. "Sandy told us everything..." There was no agonizing pain on Pitch's face anymore, instead, there was a blank, blank look adorning it. "I know you don't want any help, but you need it."  
Beside Jack, Jamie was whispering. "What's going on?"  
Grimly, the eternal youth answered. "Pitch used himself as a bait for the Fearlings, to fend them off from humans. He turned himself into their personal chew toy." Jack looked away from Jamie's horrified expression. "Pitch made Sandy promise not to tell us... but I should have known! I saw him once but--!" Sandy patted Jack's leg, too short to actually pat his shoulder.

"But why? Why would he do that?"

Jamie received his answer when The Moon shone through the hole in the roof. The Moon rarely talked to him, or to any of them, really. But when he do, it was never to just say hi.

An image of Toothiana punching Pitch appeared on their mind. Then the image changed to Pitch inside his lair, spewing his loose tooth. The tooth shone and Pitch's eyes widened. The tooth contained a memory, activated when The Tooth Fairy herself jabbed him.

A great general who protected his people.

A promise broken.

A nightmare born from loneliness.

"Pitch wasn't always The Boogeyman." Jamie breathed.

Everyone was quiet, looking ashamed and guilty for not realizing this. Even though there was no way they could have known, but they can't help but to think there must be something they could have done sooner. "Let's take him back to my workshop." North said softly.

 

* * *

 

Pitch awoke in the same bedroom he woke up before. "You are awake!" A voice chirped. Pitch turned his head and only saw a blur of color. "Pitch?"  
Like everytime he woke up, it took awhile until his mind was used to the reality presented. Not that he had a lot of time waking up. "The Tooth Fairy?"  
"And the other Guardians too." She smiled apologetically, "We are sorry."  
His brain processed the information a little longer than what he would have liked. But when he realized that _they know_. "Sorry? _Sorry_? You are not the one who failed, my Queen." Pitch said self-deprecatingly. "I should have done better. I shouldn't have fallen for their tricks!" His voice got louder and louder, until he was screaming at her face. "I almost killed you!" He gasped for breath then looked away. "I have to go back to the Fearlings, we don't need another incident."

He turned to leave, but a paw grabbed his hand. Pitch turned around and saw Bunnymund with a serious expression on his face. "Do ya really think your current method will last? It wouldn't be long before your mind breaks."  
The Boogeyman yanked his arm, "I can handle them just fine."  
"No you don't!" The Guardian of Hope yelled. "Ya were awake earlier too but you didn't respond to anything! Not even Sandy's dream can reach ya! Mate! That's prove that your mind is breaking down already!"  
"And what should I do then?! Let them roam around leaving fear on people's mind?" Pitch challenged.  
"I think you meant, 'what should _we_ do'." Jack finally said, "You are not alone in this, never again."

"I almost killed you..." The pale spirit protested weakly, but everyone can hear the hope in his voice.  
"And we let you be their chew toy, so I guess we are even." Jack shrugged to break the ice. "Soooo, any idea?"  
There was only silence for awhile. But then the spirit with the lion mask raised his hand, "I think I have one."  
"Ah, tell us then!" North encouraged.  
"Instead of being their chew toy, why not be their Master again?"  
Pitch spluttered at the idea. "I don't want to!"  
"Why? It beats being their victim..."  
The Boogeyman wanted to punch the newcomer in the face. "They need to eat fears! And if I become their Master I will have to spread fears!"

"Oh." He said, "Well, maybe you can take them to roller coaster or haunted house? Those place are full of fear right?" at Pitch's stunned silence, the masked man continued. "Fear can be good, it keep people safe from harm, as long as it doesn't spread too much."  
"And it can be fun, like watching a scary movie." Jack added helpfully.

After a long time of trying to atone for his sin, a stranger spirit was the one who helped him. It seemed so... simple. But he knew it was far from it. He was still too weak... and afraid. "Don't worry, we will hunt them down until you are fit again." North said reassuringly.

Pitch nodded and turned his head to the masked spirit. "Thank you... Sir Lionheart?" He said, recalling what the girl called him.  
Lionheart laughed and put his mask off. "Please, call me Jamie."

**Author's Note:**

> So, at Pitch POV, he thought Jamie was a spirit instead of a human.


End file.
